Understanding the connection between climate finance and development can make structuring investments more conducive to achieving wider social, economic, and environmental outcomes.
This is one of the salient insights to emerge from an independent study called, the “Evaluation of the Development Impacts from CIF’s Investments”, released by Climate Investment Funds (CIF) earlier this year.
Now, we are adding a useful new resource that draws on the lessons from this study. The “Development Impacts of Climate Finance: A Workbook” provides a step-by-step guide to planning and designing climate programs that generate social, economic, environmental, and market benefits, beyond the program’s core objectives. This workbook puts into action the key lessons from the independent evaluation and provides tools for project planners and implementors to maximize development impacts.
The crux of the independent evaluation was this: Climate finance can be catalytic and unlock positive and far-reaching development impacts. Making this a reality is particularly critical to developing countries because they need to address climate challenges that also progress wider development goals. As CIF’s Senior Technical Consultant, Nicole Pasricha, explains a country that understands the full suite of benefits it can derive from a climate intervention, can tailor investment decisions to maximize development outcomes.
The evaluation unpacks 13 country case studies with rich, tangible examples drawn from across the CIF portfolio. These examples not only break down the data but also anchor the findings in the experiences of the people who benefit from farmers improving their crop yields to women with better job opportunities improving their livelihoods. Daniel Kaufman was the lead evaluator from the independent team that conducted the evaluation. Here he highlights various examples from Bangladesh, Brazil, and Thailand, to show how climate interventions can bring meaningful change through development impacts.
Another key lesson drawn from the study is that intent is paramount. Intentionally planning and designing climate programs with development impacts front of mind, means it is no longer a by-product but a core objective and outcome of any climate intervention, as Pasricha explains:
The independent evaluation and its accompanying workbook can be used in tandem to guide anyone planning, designing, or implementing climate interventions to achieve development outcomes. Find more details on the evaluation and its supporting document here.